Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

by · The Markets Daily

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE – Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Monday.

Separately, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Astec Industries from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on ASTE

Astec Industries Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ASTE traded up $1.09 on Monday, reaching $38.91. 157,708 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 150,545. Astec Industries has a fifty-two week low of $28.46 and a fifty-two week high of $44.74. The company’s 50 day moving average is $31.83 and its 200-day moving average is $32.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $887.15 million, a PE ratio of -486.31 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31. The company had revenue of $291.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $312.90 million. Astec Industries had a positive return on equity of 7.69% and a negative net margin of 0.15%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.01) earnings per share.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Astec Industries

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SG Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Astec Industries by 100.8% in the first quarter. SG Capital Management LLC now owns 209,685 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,165,000 after acquiring an additional 105,280 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Astec Industries by 251.0% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 96,480 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,217,000 after acquiring an additional 68,991 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Astec Industries by 1.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,538,684 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,637,000 after buying an additional 29,421 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Astec Industries by 72.3% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 73,229 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,172,000 after buying an additional 30,717 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in Astec Industries by 31.9% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 86,899 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,577,000 after buying an additional 21,016 shares during the last quarter. 93.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Astec Industries Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Astec Industries, Inc designs, engineers, manufactures, and markets equipment and components used primarily in road building and related construction activities worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Infrastructure Solutions and Materials Solutions. The Infrastructure Solutions segment offers asphalt plants and related components, heaters, concrete dust control systems, asphalt pavers, vaporizers, concrete material handling systems, screeds, heat recovery units, paste back-fill plants, asphalt storage tanks, hot oil heaters, bagging plants, fuel storage tanks, industrial and asphalt burners and systems, custom batch plants, material transfer vehicles, soil stabilizing-reclaiming machinery, blower trucks and trailers, milling machines, soil remediation plants, wood chippers and grinders, pump trailers, concrete batch plants, control systems, liquid terminals, storage equipment and related parts, construction and retrofits, polymer plants, and concrete mixers, as well as engineering and environmental permitting services.

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